Tuesday, October 11, 2011

DIY Treasure Hunt Party Game

Caiden was very specific about the details of her 4th birthday party.
She specifically requested to have her presents hidden so she could have
a treasure hunt with a treasure map to find the gifts. I thought I
could make that happen. It turned out to be a big hit with all the kids
and made present time a lot more fun, too. Once they found the gifts,
all the kids helped lug the loot to a central area where they made a
pile and all circled around to open them up. Nobody even seemed sad
that Caiden was the only one to get to keep the treasure! They all
seemed to have a sense of pride in finding those gifts and were just too
happy to be a part of making it all happen.

To do this yourself, simply: Hide something, leave clues, and make a treasure map.

All you really need is:

1)paper
2)pencil
3)imagination
4)treasure

You might also want, but don't necessarily need:

5)envelopes
6)tape

I put 4 clues into white envelopes and taped them in the locations pointed out on the map (this was for a 4 yr. old, so we kept it really simple). Once it was time to hunt, I told everybody to put on their eye patch (for effect) and handed them the map, instructing them to find the clues and read them to find out where the treasure was hidden.

I made sure to make it clear that the treasure they needed to find was the birthday girl's presents and she needed everybody's help to find them!

Our map led from the 'START' words to a corner in the fence where they found the first clue; it said, "Look in another corner for your next clue." Then, "Look under something blue that you can walk up." Then, "Go to a girl's room to find another clue." Finally, "Look inside a box that is old and is outside to find the treasure."

I hope you try this and make sure to take lots of pictures and let us know how it goes!